Ship Ship Hooray: HMS Celebrates 40th ‘Berth-Day’ in Special Occasion Marked With 40 Gun Salute and New Pavilion Announcement

On Friday 21 October, HMS Belfast celebrates her fortieth anniversary as an iconic London landmark. The ship, berthed in the , was first opened to the public on 1971 and since then nearly eight million people have explored her nine decks.

HMS Belfast, part of the IWM family, will be marking this major milestone with a bang – literally! A celebratory 40-gun salute will start at 1pm and last a full seven minutes. With a round for each year HMS Belfast has been in London, the gun salute is set to wow sightseers both on board and on shore. Meanwhile visitors will also get the chance to watch ‘berth-day’ messages being signalled in flag semaphore from the masthead.

To coincide with this special occasion, HMS Belfast is also announcing plans for an exciting new Quayside Pavilion which has been granted planning permission by Council. Designed by CPMG Architects, the Pavilion will be built within the footprint of the existing structure and boast improved entrance facilities, better retail space, a ground floor cafe and a dramatic rooftop cafe-bar with stunning views. Work on the project begins at the end of this year and will be completed by Summer 2012.

On 21 October the 40-gun salute will be performed by HMS Belfast’s team of expert technicians and Yeomen, as well as several regular volunteers. They’ll be lead by a very special Salute Martial for the day – one lucky child from a local school will give the command for the firing of the first round!

Phil Reed, Director of HMS Belfast, says: “It’s testament to HMS Belfast’s fascinating history that forty years after first opening to the public, she is still an incredibly popular cultural destination. It’s only right that on Trafalgar Day 2011 we should celebrate her past successes with a spectacular gun salute, and moving forward we hope the new Quayside Pavilion will attract even more visitors on board.”

Perhaps proving that life begins at forty, 2011 has been an exciting year on board HMS Belfast. In April the Operations Room was re-opened after months of restoration and the installation of state-of-the-art interactive features. Now, thanks to the simulated radar and two touch-screen games, everyone can imagine what it would have been like to participate in a real-life naval operation. Meanwhile in July the thrilling new Experience: A Sailor’s Story, 1943 was launched. It uses lights, imagery, sound, smoke effects and movement to recreate the atmosphere of a cramped Gun Turret with its crew at action stations.

HMS Belfast is a great day out for all the family. She saw action in both the Second World War and the , and visitors today can explore the ship’s mixture of historic spaces, displays and temporary exhibitions to learn all about the exciting stories of those who served on her.

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For further press information please contact: Ellie Farrell, 020 7416 5497, [email protected] Nina Smetek, 020 7091 3069, [email protected]

Notes to Editors

HMS Belfast HMS Belfast is the most significant surviving Second World War warship, with a history that extends to the Arctic Convoys, D-Day, the Cold War, Korea and beyond. Moored on the between London and , HMS Belfast tells the story of life on board and explores how war affects and impacts on the morale, resilience and determination of a ship’s community. We take visitors on a journey though the ship’s nine decks and show them what life was like for the 950 strong crew, through the real life stories of the people who served in her.

Open daily 1 November-28 February, 10am-5pm (last admission 4pm) and 1 March-31 October, 10am- 6pm (last admission 5pm). Admission £13.50 adults; £10.80 seniors and students; £8.10 visitors with disabilities (free carer); children under 16 free; special rates for groups of ten plus. Please note entry prices include a voluntary donation, making a valuable contribution to the care and conservation of the historic site. HMS Belfast, Morgans Lane, , London SE12J

IWM IWM (Imperial War Museums) tells the story of people who have lived, fought and died in conflicts involving Britain and the Commonwealth since the First World War.

Our unique Collections, made up of the everyday and the exceptional, reveal stories of people, places, ideas and events. Using these, we tell vivid personal stories and create powerful physical experiences across our five museums that reflect the realities of war as both a destructive and creative force. We challenge people to look at conflict from different perspectives, enriching their understanding of the causes, course and consequences of war and its impact on people’s lives.

IWM’s five branches are IWM London, IWM’s branch with six floors of exhibitions and displays; IWM North, housed in an iconic award-winning building designed by Daniel Libeskind; IWM Duxford, a world renowned aviation museum and Britain's best preserved wartime airfield; , housed in Churchill’s secret headquarters below ; and the Second World War cruiser HMS Belfast.

First World War Centenary 2014 - 2018 marks the centenary of the First World War, a landmark anniversary for Britain and the world. IWM will mark the centenary by leading a vibrant, four year programme of cultural activities across the country, including the opening of brand new First World War galleries at IWM London in 2014. For more information visit www.1914.org